Cassettes. VHS. 8-track. These technologies all had a good run but are now things of the past. Will books in print meet a similar fate? In the last few years, the eBook market has grown exponentially, especially since the release of eReader devices such as Amazon’s Kindle and Sony’s eReader. Despite all the hype surrounding eBooks, the print book remains. It is a technology that has survived millennia. Change, however, is slowly coming to the publishing industry and even to the core definition of what is a book. As more companies enter the eReader market and as the reading public become more accepting of eBooks, this change will likely accelerate until reading on a digital device becomes the de facto standard.

Changing of the eBook from PDF to interactive text

The majority of eBooks published today still come from traditional publishing houses, and are simply a print book converted into digital format and made available online. While the Kindle and most other eReaders offer various features that the print book does not, such as a built-in dictionary and note-taking capabilities, there is not a significant difference in the overall reading experience. To truly harness the potential of the digital medium, eReader technology will have to advance and publishers will have to produce content that capitalizes on the interactive nature of the web. Various sectors of the publishing industry, textbook publishers for example, have already started to adapt to this changing landscape and currently offer customizable and hyperlinked text. At this point in time, however, some books still just work better in print. Cookbooks and childrens’ picture books both rely heavily on color and layout and don’t yet transfer well to digital devices, although this will likely change in the future. However, for the next few years, print books will remain the main sellers, with eBooks more of a side revenue for publishers. This will change when eBooks manage to embrace their potential for interactivity and eReaders develop beyond providing a simple imitation of reading print.

Convergence of Devices

Both Amazon and Sony entered the eReader market early on in the game. The devices they developed both use E Ink Technology, which took away many readers’ objections to converting to reading on a screen. E Ink makes reading from a screen similar to reading from a page. Although these two devices were both released less than five years ago, there have already been many changes in eReader technology and many other companies have joined the competition and created eReaders of their own. Apple releases its iPad in mid-2010, which is not only an eReader but a tablet computer with a hard drive and large memory. Barnes & Noble came out with the Nook in late 2009. Their device combines both E Ink and LCD screens in an attempt to capture the benefits of both screen types. Spring Design’s Alex, which has not yet reached the market, has a similar design. One screen will be optimal for browsing and the other for reading longer text- based documents. There is increasingly less distinction between various devices, as the line becomes blurred between a PC or an MP3 player or an eReader or a mobile phone. In the future, one device may encompass all a user’s needs, but for the moment eReaders seem to be evolving in stages, adding new features with each new device released.

Free and Less Expensive Books

The eBook market, although it is growing at an amazing rate, still makes up a small percentage of overall book sales. This will most likely change as the cost of eReaders drop and more people find that reading digital books can be an enjoyable experience. The fact that eBooks cost almost half as much as a hardcover is also a significant motivator to push readers to switch to digital. Many eBooks are not only low-priced but free. Sites such as Project Gutenberg and Google Books offer thousands of free public domain titles for download. Recently, Macmillan, a large trade publishers, fought with Amazon over the right to price books themselves instead of accepting that books cost $9.99 or less. Amazon eventually caved, but the reading public is coming to expect eBooks to be priced far below the cost of a print book. Apple is shaking up the price structure by agreeing to let publishers have more autonomy in setting the price of their books available through the Apple store. Instead of setting a flat price, the cost will be determined relative to the hardback edition. This price war for eBooks will be interesting to watch play out, but the future seems guaranteed to offer cheaper books and more affordable eReaders.

Publishers/Authors

The book market has changed very quickly in a very short time for both publishers and authors. It is easier than ever before to publish a work, as in the digital space there are no printing or storage costs to cover. With this ease of publication, however, there is already a glut of titles on the market. This makes it extremely hard for an author to break through the noise. Tradition publishing houses still provide a sense of authority to authors and a sense of security to readers because they function as gate keepers, ensuring, in most cases, that only the most worthy content reaches the printed page. In the digital world, publishers are trying to catch up and stay relevant by releasing eBooks and pursuing such innovative projects as publishing a novel in installments on mobile phones. While Google, Apple, and Amazon, third-party distributors of content, have developed eReaders, no publishing company has yet to develop a device of their own. This could prove troublesome to publishers in the future, as these companies may at some point decide to go into the publishing business themselves.

Digital publishing or electronic publishing is a way to distribute written and artistic works quickly and globally without investing a lot of time and resources into their publication. There are advantages in publishing digitally because it is environmentally superior to using paper and ink production that uses up natural resources and water.

When works are produced electronically they can be easily searched and edited and changes are not costly to make at any point during production. Works can be uploaded to the Internet or sent out on CDs and DVDs. This makes this method of publishing ideal for the scientific community because they can publish current research without the timely delays normally occurring with printed publications.

Many works are found on the Internet and sold as e-books. New technology has developed e-book readers that are portable and eliminate the need for a computer set up. Online anyone can publish whatever they want to simply by creating a website or uploading their work to another website for viewing.

Making money with digital publishing may be slightly more difficult than with traditional publishing. There could be a higher profit potential however because there are virtually no natural resources like paper involved. Once created, the digital product only needs to be marketed and delivered electronically. There are no production costs, binding, packaging or mailing costs involved unless a person is selling their product on CDs or DVDs.

Digital publishing offers anyone the opportunity to create intellectual works and sell them without going through traditional publishing channels. It also offers writers the opportunity to freelance and ghost write for others. Electronic publishing can greatly broaden the reach for digital books and manuals. These works can be sold worldwide at the touch of an electronic button. Delivery is instantaneous and payments likewise are faster to the author.

Books that are published and recorded digitally are never out of print and can be accessed through digital libraries and outlets such as Amazon and other online booksellers. There are many digital publishers who would purchase electronic submissions. Digital journals, e-magazines, e-books, online newspapers and magazines and podcasts are all types of digital publishing.

For authors who want speedy results and faster payments using digital publishing for their works is an alternative to going through the very time consuming process of selling their works through traditional outlets such as print magazines and book publishers. They can even sell their works directly by placing ads up on auction websites such as eBay.

Delivering the product following receipt of payment is just a mouse click and delivery is instant to the purchaser.

One problem that may occur with digital publishing is the ease with which written works can be plagiarized and copied. There is very little to stop this activity even with protective devices such as CopyScape services that will show if a piece has been published on the Internet previously.

Digital publishing has brought speed and distribution reach to the publishing industry unlike any other method. It is usable and accessible to anyone with a computer and can bring great written works to any remote area of the world.

With the lead up to Christmas fast approaching, and the recent price reduction on portable eBook reader devices, it may be time to take a closer look at the new range of Sony Digital Book Reader models. A portable eBook reader will be high on a lot of peoples Christmas wish lists, and with their eBook reader price cuts, the Sony digital book reader is now firmly in the gift price range, be it for your wife, husband or children.

With the enthusiasm shown by the public, in the last couple of years any way, towards digital books (also known as electronic books or eBooks for short), is it any wonder the digital book readers manufacturers are starting to sit up and take this fast growing market far more seriously.

The introduction of the Amazon Kindle Revolutionary Wireless Reading Device kick started, what had become for a number of years, a very slow moving sector of the publishing market. Whether this was the public finally realizing the benefits to the environment gained from using a portable eBook reader, such as lower manufacturing costs, lower business overheads like rent and rates and a big saving on transport costs, with instant electronic delivery of eBooks , or perhaps it was the introduction of a display that could actually be read on the move which made the Kindle the first truly affordable portable eBook reader for the masses, we will never know.

What we do know though is that the public acceptance of eBook readers has triggered a whole host of copy cat designs, many of which have a place along side the Kindle and others that rely on old hat, gen one technology which for the few dollars, pounds or euros you save are just not worth considering, a fact that has now become even more true after the recent round of price cuts.

One of the manufacturers who do stand shoulder to shoulder with Kindle is Sony. The Sony digital book reader range of models offer eBook readers a worthy alternative to the Amazon Kindle. They also have more models in their range, this alone is a great plus for the range as with the Kindle you have only the choice of two current devices, the entry level model and the $450+ DX, where as Sony offer at present four current models.

Another advantage of the Sony digital book reader range is the price. The entry level model, which has only recently been released, comes in, at the time of writing a whole $100 less than the Kindle equivalent.

As I alluded to at the start, this brings the price of a well designed, high quality eBook reader under the magical $200 price point and into reach of more and more people.

One final point to remember is that the Sony Digital Book Reader, unlike the Kindle, is supported not only in the U.S. but also in the U.K. and many other European countries like France, Germany and Holland. This is something that, when buying a portable eBook reader, has to be taken in to account along with all the other positive points delivered by the whole range of Sony digital book reader models.